Why European applicants are choosing EB-3 Visas in 2025

Over the past years, the EB-3 Visa category has gained tremendous attention among European professionals and skilled workers seeking long-term career opportunities and livelihood in the United States. With a shift in the global job and labor market, and evolving immigration polices, the EB-3 program remains a reliable route to secure a US Green Card.

As of 2025, European applicants are setting record numbers in this visa category, driven by many attractive factors that are favorable to them.

The rising appeal of the EB-3 Visa for Europeans

The EB-3 Green Card Jobs primarily cater to skilled workers, professionals, and other workers in diverse roles, who require at least two years of job experience or training. 

Compared to the more competitive EB-1 and EB-2 visas, the EB-3 Visa is a viable option for applicants without any advanced degrees or extraordinary abilities. For Europeans, especially from countries such as Germany, France, Spain, and Poland, this visa offers an attractive opportunity due to its relatively shorter processing times, unlike other employment-based visas.

According to recent U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) data, in 2024 alone, European nationals accounted for nearly 18% of all EB-3 approvals, a 25% spike from 2020. Several factors influenced this sudden surge in European applicants, likely due to streamlined application processes and rising demand for foreign talent in healthcare, engineering, and information technology industries.

Key factors driving Europeans' interest in the EB-3 Program

What could be the core reasons behind Europeans' increasing interest in the EB-3 Visa? This drive is attributed to three strategic causes: shorter wait times as compared to family-based routes, alignment with America’s most urgent job and labor shortages, and a rare predictability in the often-complex U.S. immigration system.
 

Here’s a breakdown of the notable dynamics that are quite appealing to European skilled workers:

Labor shortages in the U.S. market

In recent times, the U.S. is in a predicament of rising labor gaps, particularly in healthcare, construction, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields. However, this challenge created new opportunities for many interested foreign nationals.

European professionals, especially with hands-on relevant experience (at least 2 years), find that securing EB-3 Green Card Jobs is more feasible than ever, as American employers actively sponsor foreign workers to fill these vacant job roles. For example, where nurses from the Philippines and India already dominate the EB-3 healthcare category in the US, the European nurses, mainly from Spain and Italy, are now entering the U.S. labor market in astonishing numbers.  

Speedier processing times than other visas

The EB-3 Visa presents a more predictable timeline compared to the H-1B visa, which is still highly competitive with a strict annual threshold. In 2025, the U.S. Department of State's (DOS) monthly Visa Bulletin shows that the priority dates movement is much faster for European applicants than for other applicants from high-demand countries, mainly India and China. This shorter process makes the EB-3 an attractive alternative for Europeans seeking speedier immigration routes. 

Simplified immigration path

Compared to family-sponsored visas (often with decade-long waiting times) or the Diversity Visa Lottery (with extremely low odds), the EB-3 program provides a more direct, employment-based pathway to secure a US Green Card. This visa allows prospective foreign applicants to build a career and reside in the U.S. immediately, if not permanently, without the uncertainty of visa lotteries. 

In addition, the program has a cap of up to 10,000 annual visas for the "other workers category" (unskilled labor in permanent job roles), thereby increasing accessibility for a broader range of European applicants.

Family inclusion and long-term stability

Yes, there exists a separate visa for the family-based category. Yet, the EB-3 Program remains the most compelling option since it benefits the primary applicant with permanent residency (Green Card), along with their spouse and unmarried children under 21 years of age.

Thus, for European families looking to relocate and start a new life, this provides unmatched stability compared to temporary work visas. What's more? Green Card holders also enjoy benefits such as equal access to education and healthcare, and eventually gaining eligibility to apply for U.S. citizenship.

Europe’s growing role in EB-3 immigration

As of 2025, the US labor migration landscape is being reshaped by the growing number of European professionals and skilled workers through the EB-3 Program. And they not only contribute as high-tech specialists, but also as essential across the US’s workforce spectrum. 

A recent USCIS data verified this traction: European EB-3 approvals now constitute 1 in 5 employment-based green cards issued to non-STEM occupations, a 40% increase since 2022.  

This change underscores the following advantages, making the EB-3 Visa increasingly appealing for Europeans:  

• Inclusive eligibility: The program accommodates both degree-holding professionals and skilled tradespeople, starting from engineers to electricians.
• Stabilizing processing: The 2025 Visa Bulletin updates repeatedly highlighted forward movement for European applicants.
• Market-aligned opportunities: EB-3 sponsorship has become a strategic hiring tool with U.S. employers actively sponsoring and recruiting for 1.4 million vacant skilled positions (BLS 2025).

To overcome chronic shortages in trades involving construction supervision and healthcare technologists, European candidates are becoming the primary choice for U.S. employers. Unlike lottery-based systems or family sponsorship queues, which often extend to decades, the EB3 Visa offers a relatively shorter process in U.S. immigration.

Challenges and considerations for European applicants

While the benefits of the EB-3 visa are appealing, it is wise to account for the upcoming bottlenecks:

• Employer sponsorship requirement: Securing a job offer from a U.S. employer willing to sponsor the visa is the primary step.
• Processing delays: Though faster than other categories, backlogs can still occur. 
• Educational & experience requirements: Applicants must meet specific criteria based on their job category.

Closure

As one of the most accessible pathways to a stable life and career in the US, and with many other associated advantages, beyond family sponsorships, it is no surprise that European professionals are choosing this option in 2025. With improved DOL processing times and USCIS prioritizing employment-based cases, permanent US residency has now become more accessible than before for Europeans.